Sclerotherapy is a medical procedure used to eliminate the appearance of varicose and spider veins. The procedure involves an injection of a saline solution directly into the vein, causes the target vein to immediately shrink and dissolve over a period of weeks as the body naturally absorbs the treated vein.
Sclerotherapy is preferred over laser for eliminating large spider veins (telangiectasia) and smaller varicose leg veins. Unlike a laser, the solution closes the feeder veins under the skin that are causing the spider veins to form, thereby making a recurrence of the spider veins in the treated area less likely.
Multiple injections of dilute sclerosant are injected into the abnormal surface veins of the involved leg. The patient’s leg is then compressed with either stockings or bandages that they wear usually for two weeks after treatment. Patients are also encouraged to walk regularly during that time. It is common practice for the patient to require at least two treatment sessions separated by several weeks to significantly improve the appearance of their leg veins.
Sclerotherapy is a well-proven procedure and has been in use since the 1930s. This technique can be combined with the VariLite™ laser therapy as well.